Of Knights and Ronins
by windfalcon
Summary: A mysterious book sent by a friend of Keitaro's Grandmother promises to change his life forever. How do four Cloud Knights alter the flow of the Love Hina story, and who else is entangled in this world of Magic and Devices? Stand By, Ready! Set Up!
1. A New Chapter

At times it may seem that no matter how hard you work, all you end up with is failure. But what you may not realize, if you take a step back and look, is that all that hard work was not in vain. You know more now than you did before, and with that knowledge, a new opportunity may open up before you. It just requires a little more hard work to get there.

The Magical Lyrical Nanoha A's and Love Hina story, of Knights and Ronins, now begins.

* * *

**Chapter 1 A New Chapter**

* * *

In the Spring of 1999, a hopeful young man had his dreams shattered.

Keitaro Urashima, 19 year old second time hopeful for the prestigious Tokyo University, felt his dreams for the future slip through his fingers like sand. Standing before the results board, he checked for the nth time to make sure he was unable to see his number. He had even asked a couple of the people around him if they could help, in case he kept missing it due to his bad eyesight.

Yet no matter how many times he asked... how many times he searched... it was not there. Keitaro Urashima, student number A35628, had failed to get into Toudai a second time.

Burned out, all the nervous energy he had built up that morning just left the time he realized he stilll hadn't moved from his spot, he was standing before the results board alone. With a sigh, Keitaro made his way home, dragging his feet along the way as he could already imagine what his mother would say.

* * *

"You failed AGAIN?!"

Wincing at the force of his mother's shout, Keitaro had to keep himself from putting his hands over his ears to protect his poor eardrums. While it would have comforted him, it would only make his mother's rage that much worse. Currently, the family was sitting around the dinner table, his father doing his best to hide behind his newspaper while his mother seemed to be doing her level best to break the sound barrier with her cries.

"What do you think you're doing?! The prep school sent a letter saying your chances of getting into Tokyo University are zero percent! You know we can't afford to have you go to school just to fulfill some childhood promise!"

While his mother's tirades had never been this loud before, Keitaro thought he knew what to expect from them. After the first time he had failed, his mother had done her best to try and get Keitaro to try for another school. When he steadfastly refused, she made her displeasure known every so often. Stilll, this was the first time she brought up the promise he was adamant about keeping...

"Why don't you try something else? You like to draw, so why not try an art college? Even if it doesn't lead anywhere, at least you can build from it for something else! Or how about quitting school altogether and taking over the sweet shop? You make those incredible chocolates for yourself every Valentine's Day, so put those skills to work and give up this ridiculous dream of yours!"

Every word seemed to hammer down Keitaro's shield of indifference. It was stilll the same as before, this conversation exactly like every other his mother had with him, but that didn't mean the words didn't sting. Clenching his fist, the chopsticks in his hand seemed to audibly creak in his grip as he tried to withstand her tirade.

"You're already 19 years old for Kami's sake! If you wish to continue this foolish ambition, then get out! I'll only allow you to stay here if you wise up and go for something actually achievable for you!"

His mother's words hit Keitaro deeply. Looking down at his barely touched food, Keitaro set his chopsticks down and nodded. Slowly, he got up without a word and began walking to his room.

"Keitaro? KEITARO! Where are you going?! I'm not done with you yet!"

Turning back to his mother, Keitaro smiled softly, though the expression didn't reach his eyes. In fact, they looked almost dead as he regarded her. "... I'm going to bed... then I'll be leaving in the morning." Turning back to his mother, Keitaro bowed deeply, before moving to his room, the gobsmacked look on his mother's face giving him only a small spark of satisfaction as he entered his room.

Turning to her husband, Keitaro's mother tried to figure out what she did wrong... but only a long sigh and the turn of the newspaper as he read on answered her. "Anata, don't just sit there, say something to him!"

Glancing up at his wife, Keitaro's father arched a brow, before shaking his head, folding his newspaper up and setting it gently on the table. "I believe, darling, you've said enough for both of us. I believe what he needs is time, and one way or another, something will work out." And before his shocked wife's eyes, Keitaro's father just sat there and began to calmly eat his meal, glad for the peace and quiet at the table for a change.

* * *

As soon as he entered his room, Keitaro spotted a brown package on his desk, a note sitting next to it. Moving to it, he picked up the note and glanced it over curiously.

'Keitaro, This package came in the mail. Seems to be from a friend of your Grandmother Hinata. Make sure to properly send a letter of thanks.  
Dad.'

Shaking his head at the note, Keitaro took a moment to inspect the package. Reaching to pick it up, Keitaro was surprised at how heavy it was for its size. Narrowing his eyes, Keitaro considered the possibilities, before shrugging and setting it back on his desk. _'Probably another encyclopedia set. Granny's friends seem to think they'll help for some reason...'_ Letting out a yawn, Keitaro prepared for bed. While early, he wanted to avoid meeting anyone in the house when he left. That, and after the day he had, he felt incredibly tired.

Falling asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, Keitaro slept the sleep of the exhausted, thus he never noticed how the package on his desk seemed to shudder and shake for a few moments before finally calming down...

* * *

Keitaro woke early the following morning, spending a good half an hour staring at the ceiling as he recalled the events of the previous day. _'Well, I already said I'd do it, but where do I go from here?'_ he thought as he pulled himself out of bed. Sighing softly, he began to go through the annoying task of packing up necessities. If he was going to find a new place to live, he'd need to make sure he took only the essentials till he could call on his father to send his things.

IF he could find a new place.

Amongst his essentials, Keitaro made sure to pack four things, his art supplies, his Print Club Collection, his Exam Ticket... and after a moment of hesitation, the brown package on his desk. While staring intently at the package, Keitaro suddenly recalled something about his grandmother.

She ran an Inn.

It was a long shot... but she was the only relative he had that was relatively nearby. No... that wasn't quite right. His Aunt Haruka lived with Granny as well from what he recalled. Hopefully he could appeal to them to let him stay and work at the Inn! With a vague hope and the slight beginnings of an actual plan, Keitaro double checked to make sure he had everything, before opening his door, nearly running headlong into his father in his rush to get to his Grandmother's Inn.

"I see you are eager to get on your way."

Keitaro's father had always been a quiet presence in Keitaro's life. His father would usually sit back and let his wife do the talking, though in turn this made it easy for everyone to talk to him. it also made the few times he spoke stand out, making even his mother quiet down when he had something to say. Smiling softly at his son, Keitaro's father held out a small envelope and patted Keitaro on the shoulder.

"Directions to Grandmother's Inn and Haruka's Tea House are in there, along with a little something from me. Don't mind your mother... just stay true to yourself son."

With that and another firm pat on his son's shoulder, Keitaro's father moved from the doorway back to his bedroom. Looking down at the envelope in his hands, Keitaro carefully opened it. Inside was a folded paper he assumed was the directions his father told him about... and a large sum of money. Gasping, Keitaro looked down the hall, only to find his father already had gone to his room. Biting his bottom lip, Keitaro carefully put the envelope into his bag before bowing deeply in the direction of his parents' room, wiping away at the tears that threatened to form as he silently thanks his father.

With a soft farewell, Keitaro adjusted the bag on his shoulder before leaving his home, eager to pursue the faint hope this new direction gave him and hopeful that he could do his father proud.

* * *

The train and trolley rides needed to get to Hinata Hot Springs from his home seemed to blur for Keitaro. His mind was constantly running across the possibilities of what would happen once he got there. He had almost missed his stop because of it, despite the loud announcements of the trolley's arrival.

Half remembered scenery passed by him as his feet seemed to move of their own volition. Every step closer to his goal brought a mix of hope and doubts. Would they remember him? he hadn't seen his Grandmother or his Aunt in a long while. And even if they did remember him, would they allow him to stay?Would he bother the guests there by arriving? Would the staff treat him nicely, or be rude because they might see him as a freeloader? Underneath these constant worries lay one simple voice of reason, so soft it was barely a whisper, yet it made itself known through the din of his barrage of self-imposed questions.

_'Where else do you have to go?'_

His mind quieted at the question. There was no where else. If this did not pan out... well... he had enough to stay at a very cheap apartment for a while till he found a job. He might even have to put off a year of prep school to get a job if that proved to be the only option. But before all that... he wanted to try here first.

Mind and heart finally set, Keitaro stopped moving and blinked, finding himself standing before a large three story building, its older style and slightly worn look marking it as well aged. Gripping the strap of his bag tightly, Keitaro swallowed, before stepping to the door. It was now or never. Pulling it open firmly, the young man let out a loud greeting.

"Hello! Sorry for the intrusion, my name is Keitaro Urashima!"

He wasn't exactly sure what to expect when he got here. Perhaps his Grandmother and Aunt standing in the entryway, waiting for him. Or someone standing behind the reception desk with a welcoming smile on her face. Heck, he would have settled for some random guests staring at him incredulously before moving about their business.

What he didn't expect... was nothing.

Only silence greeted him as he gazed into the entry hall, a worried frown on his face as he looked about. "Grandma Hinata? Aunt Haruka? Is anyone about?"

Waiting a few more moments, Keitaro sighed softly when no answer came. Closing the door behind him, the young Ronin made his way carefully through the hallway, helping himself to a pair of house slippers as he did. "Maybe Granny has a tourist group and is showing them around Hinata Hot Springs..." Keitaro muttered to himself as he made his way up the stairs. It was the only reason he could think of for no one to be around... even if it felt like he was reaching.

Stilll, whatever the case, Keitaro figured the best place to wait would be his Grandmother's room. Finding the door easily, Keitaro slipped inside and set his pack down with a relieved sigh. A quick glance around revealed the place to be fairly spartan, only a few items on the shelves showing any of his Grandmother's personality. A small sheep statue, a few vases... _'Perhaps Grandma likes to keep things simple?'_ the thought didn't help ease the heavy feeling of doubt growing within him.

Shaking his head, Keitaro sat down next to his backpack and began to sift through its contents, all this thinking about his Grandmother finally bringing the odd package back to the fore of his memory. 'I wanted to ask Granny about it... but now seems as good a time as any to open it.' Pulling the thick package out, Keitaro examined it curiously, before carefully undoing the brown paper wrapping. In little time at all, an odd book was revealed, sitting in his lap as Keitaro stared at it incredulously. Wrapped in chains was a thick brown book with gold trim, what appeared to be a bladed cross of some kind embossed heavily on the front cover and spine. Idly running his fingers over the design, Keitaro could feel the cold metal of the cross. Whoever made the book spent quite a hefty sum on it if they could make the design out of actual gold. At the center of either side of the book, where the chains met and almost obscured the crosses, was circular metal ring, a round purple gem sitting directly at the center.

"What the hell is this for...?" Keitaro muttered as he tried to figure out the book. Even if it wasn't wrapped in chains, Keitaro couldn't understand what the book could possibly be about. And why was it wrapped in chains? Giving them an experimental tug, he found they were tightly bound to the book. No slack whatsoever... and from what he could tell, there was no lock either.

"Geez.... maybe it's some kinda magic book of something" he said jokingly as he set it down. "Or maybe a puzzle of some kind. 'Find the best hints of studying by opening this book!', sounds like something a senile friend of Grandma's might do." Shaking his head, Keitaro laughed as he placed a hand over it. "What were those magic words I heard once...? Ah! Abra Kadabra, Alakazam!" With a playful wave of his hand, Keitaro enunciated the last word with a point of his finger... before breaking out into laughter. Falling onto his back on the floor, Keitaro let out a long sigh, the laughter having helped ease his unease from being in the seemingly empty hotel.

Just as he was about to let his mind wander, Keitaro noticed an purple light shining from the table he placed the book on. Curious, Keitaro sat up, his eyes widening as the dark light seemed to grow in intensity before the book floated up from the table. Panicking, Keitaro backpedaled till he was against the wall, watching fearfully as the book started to float towards him. As the dark light grew stronger, the book's covers seemed to have pulsing veins appear on it, an audible pulsing sound not unlike a slow, heavy heartbeat filling his ears as it drew nearer. When it was only a foot before him, the book strained against the chains binding it... till the chains burst, the book opening wide before the frightened Ronin, blank pages flipping ominously before him.

A robotic voice seemed to come from the book as the pages flew past, and while he couldn't recognize the language, for some reason he felt he could understand what the Book was saying.

**[Releasing Seal]**

Keitaro could only stare as the last page of the book was flipped through, revealing the bare inner cover of the back. With a final 'clap', the Book shut and began floating down towards him. Unable to get away, Keitaro swallowed as the Book's cross seemed to stare directly at him.

**[Activating]

* * *

**

Not far from the Hinata-sou, a newly lit cigarette fell from the lips of one Haruka Urashima as a massive pulse of magic washed over her before it vanished. Feeling her knees give out from under her, Haruka caught herself against the wall over her coffee shop, a cold sweat dripping down her brow as she tried to catch her breath. _'What... is this magical energy....? Is it coming from the Dorm..?'_ Clutching at a pendant hidden beneath her sweater, Haruka set the closed sign over her door before muttering a soft phrase. A brief flash of light enveloped her, then with a brief tense of her legs and a masculine voice calling out **[Flash Move]**, Haruka flew towards the top of the steps. Her goal, the source of the brief magical surge before any of the girls came home.

_'I'm getting too old for this...'_

Author's Notes: Yes, another new story from me. Please don't be mad, but I've been having a lot of Love Hina ideas lately. This combination of series has quite a few possibilities, so I'll be sticking with this for a good while. Thanks go out to Ryoga's Best Friend, aka TrowaVidel for his help and continued feedback.


	2. Life and Times

New acquaintances. Old Friends. Family we haven't met for a while. Partings and gatherings. For every person whose life you touch, they in turn affect your life in mysterious ways, and as time goes on, you cannot help but look on such meetings with fondness. We grow and mature with every meetings, and as we go on our life path becomes clearer.

The Magical Lyrical Nanoha A's and Love Hina story, of Knights and Ronins, now begins.

* * *

**Chapter 2 Life and Times

* * *

**

The day had been going uncharacteristically well for one Mitsune 'Kitsune' Konno. She found a 10,000 yen bill on the ground, and as she was spending her newfound cash at her favorite bar. She even ran into a cute guy there who bought her a few more rounds and left his number, along with an invitation to meet up again next week. All she needed was her good fortune to rub off on her chosen horse in the next race and she would be set rent wise for the next couple months!

Which was why, when she felt a power pulse of malignant magic sweep over her the moment she stepped off the Trolley, she was not surprised at all and made her way to the closest concealed alleyway. _'I knew it. Too good to be true. It was either this or a call from the folks...'_ Shivering at the idea of getting a call from her parents, Kitsune glanced about to make sure there were no observers, before pulling what appeared to be a touch screen palm pilot from her pocket. The device was sleek and black, a golden foxhead design emblazoned on the back as well as resting in the center of the screen.

"Ao, status report."

Tapping on the fox symbol on the screen, the design literally popped off the device, floating in mid air before Kitsune, surrounded by a holographic screen . Releasing the device, the palm pilot floated in place, allowing Kitsune to have both hands free. As the device responded, the golden fox symbol pulsed with each syllable. **[AAA Class Magical Reading. Source, Unknown. Origin, Hinata-Sou. Exercise Extreme Caution.]**

Paling at the report, Kitsune had the sneaking suspicion that perhaps a call from her parents might have been better than a magical threat after all. Shaking her head clear of the thought, she glared at the screen and tapped the emblem of her device, pushing it to one side to call up a menu. "Any security cameras left active? Any chance we can see the source or exactly where in Hinata-sou it is?"

The fox head design spun in place on the screen as Ao considered the request. **[Negative, Master. All observational devices within the vicinity of the Hinata-sou, save for perimeter cameras, are offline. until units are operational again, access to records is unavailable. According to calculations, the source seems to have come from the Admiral's Quarters.]**

Cursing, Kitsune called up the stilll active perimeter cameras. She couldn't see much of the Hinata-sou itself, since they were installed to warn about intruders or unknown visitors. Luckily, she was able to catch a glimpse of something black and yellow flashing past the screen. "Ao, tell me that was Haruka."

**[Confirmed. Haruka Urashima, Barrier Jacket Active, currently en route to Hinata-sou, possibly to engage the Source. Shall I patch you through, Master**

Suffice it to say, the resounding 'YES' that echoed through the alleyway luckily didn't draw any attention, save for causing nearby birds to fly off spooked.

* * *

Haruka cursed as she stood in front of the Hinata-sou. It didn't take long at all to Flash Move up the stairs, but she couldn't tell where the source of the energy was coming from. The reason why was simply because the entire building was giving off powerful energy, making pinpointing the source with just her own senses difficult. A sudden chime from her Device caught her attention. "Speak."

_'Haruka-san!'_

Blinking in confusion, Haruka stared at her Device incredulously for a moment before responding. "Kitsune?"

_'Have you spotted the source yet?'_

Nodding to herself, Haruka allowed herself to smile. Maybe she wouldn't have to search the building after all. "Not yet. I've been thinking of how to approach, since I don't want to destroy Hinata-sou or garner too much attention dealing with this. But if you are in the area..."

Kitsune responded with a confident chuckle she had come to associate with the fox-eyed girl only when she was bragging about a 'sure thing' in her gambles. Suffice it to say it didn't really fill her with confidence. _'Way ahead of you Haruka-san. Just wanted to confirm your position first. Soon as the barrier is up, head straight for Granny's room. I don't know what's in there, but whoever or whatever the source is, is located right there. Get ready to bust in on my mark.'_

Nodding, Haruka waited, tensing her legs as she focused on the window leading to the manager's Room. Gripping her Device firmly in one hand, she grinned. "It's been a while since we had some action. Let's do this, Spartan."

**[Ready, My Master]**

_'Mark in Five. Four. Three. Two...'

* * *

_

_'I'm dreaming... this is a dream, it has to be...'_ Keitaro thought as he stared incredulously at the four people down on one knee before him. it wasn't the fact that these people were acting subservient to him, or the fact that the one guy of their group seemed to have furry wolf ears poking out of his hair. No, it was the fact that these four people appeared out of thin air. One moment, he was staring at the talking book floating before him, then the next a bright flash of light nearly blinded him. When his eyesight cleared, these four people were already on one knee, swearing oaths to him and making him out to be some kind of Lord or something.

_'You are not dreaming, Master. This is all very real.'_ responded a woman's voice in his head.

Jumping at the voice, Keitaro looked around wildly. He knew he didn't hear anything, cause neither he nor the Knights before him spoke. Then slowly, Keitaro turned back to the Knights and swallowed. "Did you... say something?"

"Yes Master." responded the Knight closest to him, a woman with long, light purple hair tied into a high ponytail. "I responded to you using telepathy. Since we are bound to you by the Book of Darkness, we are able to speak directly with you and each other through it with little effort."

Slightly frightened at the thought of these unknown people hearing his thoughts, Keitaro tried his best not to think too much about anything. Not at how weird the guy's fuzzy ears looked, how young the red-haired girl looked or how pretty the purple-haired one speaking to him was. Sadly, by the odd choking noises coming from a couple of them, Keitaro had the feeling he wasn't doing too well on the not thinking bit. Especially when the one with blonde, wavy hair in the back seemed to slightly pout a bit. "No thoughts about me, Master?"

Blushing fiercely, Keitaro shook his head and cleared his throat a few times, trying to focus his mind somehow. "Right. Well lets move on to what the heck this Book of Darkness or whatever is and what you guys are here f-" Keitaro stopped mid sentence as an odd, chill feeling washed over him. Wrapping his arms around himself, Keitaro swallowed. It felt as if his entire body fell asleep for a moment. The sunlight shining from the half-open window seemed to darken to a blood red around the same time as the odd sensation as well. "What... was that...?"

Instead of responding, the four Knights suddenly stood up, their faces going from calm, controlled expressions to serious and alert, the four of them forming a half-circle around Keitaro, facing the window, while two of them, the purple haired one and the young red head, seemed to summon weapons before them in a flash of light. "Hey! What's going on?!"

Hefting her sword, the woman with the purple ponytail focused on the window, prepared for battle. "A barrier has been erected, Master, and we sense someone approaching with a strong magical signature."

The redheaded girl gripped the long shaft of a steel mallet firmly. "Here they come, Signum."

A sudden explosion nearly deafened Keitaro as the window (and most of the wall surrounding it) they were staring at was destroyed, small debris flying inward as a figure, sheathed in green light with some kind of blade extended, charged through the dust to engage the one the redhead called Signum.

Pressing himself against the wall, Keitaro could only watch in horror as Signum held the attack, her blade blocking the intruder's deftly. Instead of responding, Signum gave a barely perceptible nod, to which the man with the furry ears responded with a charging right punch at the intruder, his clawed hands having materialized metal gauntlets over them while Keitaro wasn't looking. Considering the enclosed space the four Knights found themselves in, the man's unarmed strikes seemed the best choice for the battle.

Seeing their initial attack fail, the intruder backed away from them both, a bright flash of green light emitting from the weapon it held. Turning his head away from the flash, Keitaro couldn't help but tense when an odd robotic voice spoke out from the dust and debris that had yet to settle from the initial breakthrough.

**[Shooting Mode]**

As the bright flash died, Keitaro felt the Knights gather closer in front of him, almost obscuring him from view. hesitantly, Keitaro glanced past their shoulders and swallowed. The intruder was definitely female, if the way the dark green suit and trenchcoat she wore bulged at the chest was any indication. In her hand, she held what seemed to be an oddly weapon, as if someone took a long, ornate dagger and bent the blade so it was similar to a gun. A triangular gem was embedded between blade and hilt, right where a trigger would be on the 'gun'.... and at the tip of the blade, a slowly growing ball of green light was manifesting.

As the dust settled, Keitaro also got a good look at the damage that was dealt to his Grandmother's Inn. The entire section of wall where the window used to be was completely gone, along with the furniture that lay along the connecting wall and the table where he had placed his things. _'... if this isn't a Dream...'_

The short red-haired Knight growled as she gripped her mallet firmly. "This mage is skilled. We don't have room to maneuver or escape, and if we try to escape we can't defend against that blast. From the looks of it she might take down this entire building to get at us." There was a slight tinge of respect in her voice, and the fact that no one denied her claims seemed to pound the fact home. Stepping forward past the Knights, Keitaro shouted at the person who seemed intent on the wanton destruction of private property.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY GRANDMOTHER'S INN?!"

Keitaro's cry seemed to cause the attacker to hesitate. For the first time, Keitaro and the Attacker seemed to get a good look at each other, causing an eerie silence to fall between them. After a few moments, Keitaro took another step forward, adjusting his glasses, no longer paying attention to the Knights even as they were trying to get him behind them. ".... Aunt Haruka?"

The attacker's eyes widened in recognition as she lowered her Device slightly. "Keitaro? The hell are you doing here? And who the hell are those guys?"

Blinking, Keitaro glanced back at the Knights, weapons stilll out though they looked hesitant, unsure whether or not to attack this person their Master seemed to know. Turning back to Haruka, Keitaro scratched the back of his head, sweating a little. "Um... Friends... I guess..." Glancing down at the weapon in Haruka's hands, Keitaro couldn't help but swallow a bit in fear. "Aunt Haruka... any chance you could put the gun down so we can talk? A bit hard to focus on a happy reunion when you have a gun pointed at you."

Taking a moment to glance down at her gun, Haruka thought for a bit, before glancing at the Knights behind Keitaro. "I only have it out cause your friends are armed. I'll put mine away if they put theirs away at the same time."

Turning back to the Knights, Keitaro nodded, smiling reassuringly at them. "It's ok guys. She's family." Hesitantly, the Knights nodded, their weapons vanishing in a flash of light. Now that he got a good look at them, the one with the blond, wavy hair seemed to be clutching the Book tightly to her, likely to protect it from the intruder. Another flash of light out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and when he turned to look at his aunt, she was already standing there, suit and trenchcoat gone to be replaced by a simple black blouse and slacks, a yellow apron over it all. There was no sign of the weapon she used at all. Stilll, there were far too many things in need of explanation. "Aunt Haruka, what's go-"

A sudden beeping noise interrupted Keitaro. Haruka let out a curse and placed a hand over her ear, turning away from Keitaro with her free hand held up, motioning for him to wait. "Gotta take this real quick."

Shaking his head, Keitaro sighed deeply. Somehow, he had the feeling that it would be a while before anything was made clear.

* * *

_'This is Haruka, Go.'_

Letting out a sigh of relief, Kitsune let out a silent prayer to the local spirits before focusing to the matter at hand. "Haruka-san, what's the situation, have you dealt with the source yet?" She had set Ao to constantly send messages to Haruka's Spartan, with the request to be let through the moment the situation was deemed safe.

_'More or less. Though it's complicated and I don't have enough information about it right now. Why?'_

"Why? Simple, because during Radio Silence, the girls have been spotted on their way home! Motoko, Shinobu and Su are already on their way up the steps!"

**[Correction, my Master. Motoko Aoyama, Kaolla Su and Shinobu Maehara are near the top of the steps. Caution, Motoko Aoyama has begun attacking the barrier. I suggest the barrier be dropped if the situation is safe, as Haruka Urashima says.]**

Twitching at her verbose Device, Kitsune muttered a few choice curses under her breath. _'Why the hell was I stuck with the talkative one?'_ Shaking her head, she focused on the screen in front of her. "Haruka-san-"

_'Do it.'_ Haruka said, interrupting her. _'I'll handle things here. Hurry home too, I'll need your help with damage control. Haruka out.'_

Cut off mid-word, Kitsune appeared frozen for a moment, her mouth partially open and a hand slightly raised as if to do something. Only Ao's notification of **[Haruka Urashima has terminated the communication link. Orders?]** shook her from her momentary freeze. Glaring at the screen, Kitsune tapped a few items on the screen and snorted.

"Terminate the barrier quickly. And while you're at it, get me the results of today's second and third races."

**[Barrier terminated. Unfortunately, the results for both races are unfavorable to you, my Master. Message Alert. You have one new message from your parents. Would you like to listen to it now?]**

Letting out a frustrated scream, followed by a 'NO!', Kitsune returned her device to its resting mode and stomped her way home. "I hate today..." Kitsune's only consolation was that she was able to bring down the barrier before any of the girls saw anything... she hoped.

* * *

_Five minutes ago_

Frowning slightly, Motoko Aoyama looked towards the top of the stairs. Something felt off to her, but she couldn't exactly identify what it was. Carefully easing her hand to the hilt of the shinai, she glanced at her two companions. She didn't want to worry them after all. Shinobu and Su, after all, were the youngest girls in the Dorm, and it was her duty as a warrior to protect them from whatever danger should arise.

Stilll, even if it was just her imagination, better safe than sorry. "Su, Shinobu... stay here a moment. Something doesn't feel right."

Shinobu looked at Motoko worriedly, while Su merely smiled brightly and latched onto Motoko's back. "I'll go with yas!"

Shaking her head, she gave Su the best stern glare she could muster... which is difficult to do when trying to look over your shoulder at something strapped to your back. "No Su, if something is up there, I need to be free to move as freely as possible. I cannot do so if you are on my back. Nor can I fight confidently if I have to worry about protecting you."

Su took a moment to take in what was being told to her, before sighing and climbing off of Motoko with a nod. "Alright. I'll stay here and protect Shinobu!"

Smiling softly at the dark-skinned girl, Motoko lightly patted Su on the head, before turning about and running straight up the stairs. Just as she reached the top, she felt herself run straight into an invisible wall, the area around where she hit rippling with what appeared to be a golden energy. Frowning, Motoko hefted the practice sword in her hands.

"A barrier... I haven't seen something like this since leaving home..." Focusing her inner energies, Motoko took a deep breath before leaping high into the air. With a loud cry of **"ZANGANKEN!"** Motoko brought the bamboo blade down against the barrier, the energy-infused practice sword groaning at the strain. Golden energy continued to ripple around the invisible barrier where she struck it, the glow of the wall shining gradually brighter as she put more pressure into the attack. Sadly, the bamboo blade was not built for such an assault, and with a final, resounding crack, the shinai shattered. Landing on the ground again, Motoko glared at the handle left in her hand with distaste.

"Motoko!" Turning to the source of the voice, Motoko sighed and shook her head as she saw Su, followed by a hesitant Shinobu, come to the top of the stairs. "I got tired of waitin for yas!"

Sighing, Motoko glanced at the area where the barrier was. "It seems something is blocking the way. I do not know what it is, but it seems to be a barrier of sorts."

Glancing at Motoko oddly, Su looked in the direction Motoko was and tillted her head to one side. "I don't see anythin"

Slowly, Shinobu stepped forward and reached a hand out. "You mean.. something is here?" she asked. Motoko nodded as she watched Shinobu try to feel out the barrier... only to blink as Shinobu took a few steps past where the barrier was, her hand stilll seeking the unseen wall.

Surprised, Motoko reached out as well, only to find nothing. A few experimental punches confirmed that the barrier she shattered her shinai against was indeed gone.

"Mou... Motoko-san! I never expected you to be the kind of person to trick us!" Shinobu said with a slightly hurt expression. Turning away with a sniff, Shinobu marched her way into the house, leaving Motoko to gape in her direction.

Distracted as she was, she didn't notice the thoughtful expression Su had as she glanced at the shattered pieces of bamboo that lay scattered on the ground. Turning to Motoko, Su slowly grinned before pouncing on the shocked girl, clinging to her back with a laugh. "C'mon Motoko, let's take a bath!"

Shaken out of her shock, Motoko glanced at Su, before slowly nodding, the shinai handle gripped firmly in her hand as if to verify that it was really there.

* * *

Keitaro watched Haruka curiously as she let out a long sigh, her suit and trenchcoat glowing briefly, before fading from view, revealing a simple black blouse and slacks, over which was a long yellow apron. Something happened in that moment in the room, since by the time her normal clothes were revealed, the entire room was back to the way it was before Haruka crashed through the window. Before he could ask, Haruka had already began speaking again. "Seems we will have to postpone our touching reunion Keitaro. I have to go downstairs and talk to the girls to make sure they won't freak out the moment they see you. After all... boys are generally not allowed in a Girl's Dormitory."

That made sense to Keitaro as he sat crosslegged on the ground. He didn't want to upset anyone needlessly, and the last thing he needed was to be branded a pervert for... blinking a moment, Keitaro looked up at Haruka in surprise. "Wait... Girl's Dormitory? I thought Grandma ran an Inn!"

Haruka's look of shock met Keitaro's... before the normally calm and collected woman broke out into heavy laughter. Holding her sides, Haruka shook her head and wiped a tear from her eye as she looked back at Keitaro's stilll shell-shocked expression. "Ahh Keitaro.... we really need to talk it seems. For now, just sit tight... and see if you can't find your friends something more... modern... to wear. With the way they are, they look like some kinda troupe or something." Taking a few moment to catch her breath and regain her composure, Haruka made her way to the door, stopping a moment to glance back at Keitaro. "By the way.. why are you here anyway? Shouldn't you be in Toudai?"

Wincing at the reminder of his journey, Keitaro shook his head. "Mom and Dad kicked me out, since I failed the entrance exams again this year.... I was hoping for someplace to stay while I studied and tried again."

Nodding, Haruka glanced at Keitaro's friends for a moment. "Well... I can think of a few things, the girls won't be a problem, it's just your large friend over there that might make things difficult. Try to come up with something believable with them and I'll do my best to back you up." With that, Haruka left, closing the door behind her.

Shaking his head, Keitaro sighed as his hopes of staying seemed to become slim at best. Turning to the Knights, Keitaro did his best to think of a solution, moving towards his bag to pull out the extra clothes he packed with him.

"Before we do anything.. I guess the best thing to do would be to ask your names. And maybe from there I can finally get an explanation as to what's going on, hm?" Keitaro felt a momentary surge of accomplishment as the Knights appeared apologetic. It was an odd feeling, being in charge... stilll, he had little time to dwell on it as the Knights began to fill him in on as much of the basics of their situation as possible in the short window of time allowed them.

* * *

Moving down the stairs, Haruka spotted a rather upset looking Shinobu making her way to the kitchen. Arching a brow at the fact that the normally shy and kind girl was actually upset about something, Haruka called out to her with a slight wave. "Oi, Shinobu."

That seemed to interrupt whatever thoughts were upsetting the girl as she looked to Haruka in surprise, the out of place look on her face giving way to a curious one as she waved back to Haruka. "Haruka-san? Will you be joining us for dinner today?"

Smiling at the girl, Haruka reached out to ruffle her hair playfully. "Sounds good actually. Make enough for another five more too... I got some guests with me that I need to talk to you girls about. Before the food's ready, mind calling a House Meeting for me?"

"Guests?" Shinobu blinked, taking in the odd request, before nodding. "No problem Haruka-san!"

Chuckling a bit, Haruka patted Shinobu's head before pulling away. "Knew I could count on ya, kiddo. Now... have ya seen Kitsune about?" Receiving a negative shake of the head as a response, Haruka sighed and shrugged, waving off Shinobu's curious look. "Well, don't worry about it, I'll find her. She's probably almost home anyhow. I'm lookin forward to some good food, Shinobu." Watching Shinobu smile and move quickly into the kitchen, Haruka chuckled softly before walking off to continue her search. A smiling Shinobu was better for everyone all around, though she did wonder what could've possibly upset the girl.

"Speaking of upset girls..." Haruka muttered as a rather angry looking Kitsune came through the Dorm's entrance. Despite already knowing she could best down the fox-eyed girl any day of the week, she stilll felt a chill run down her spine when Kitsune glared at her the moment she spotted her. "Hey Kitsune." she said with a casual wave. "I'm guessin you're upset. Lets talk over a few drinks and I'll explain everythin, k?"

Kitsune's glare lost a bit of its power at the prospect of a few drinks and some information. Muttering something under her breath, Kitsune sighed and nodded. "Fine. Lets go."

* * *

"So... let me get this straight." Keitaro said as he sat crosslegged on the floor. Of course, he was sitting facing the corner as the two female Knights were borrowing his extra clothes to get dressed. "This... is the Book of Darkness... and it has the power to grant me any one wish. And you guys are my Guardians because it's somehow bound itself to me?" Holding said book in his hands, he turned it around curiously, giving it a thorough inspection to see if any of its wish-giving powers were somehow visible on the cover. Carefully opening it, he leafed through its many blank pages idly. "So... how does it grant wishes? I mean, there isn't even anything written in this Book. Do I, like, write my wish in here then hang the book from a bamboo branch like in Tanabata?"

The image of the Book of Darkness being hung by a bamboo branch made for an odd picture in the Knights' minds, one they were quick to dispel lest they lost control of themselves and begin laughing. "No, Master." spoke the Knights' Leader, Signum. "In order to grant your desire, we must collect Linker Cores for the Book to absorb. As it does so, the pages will with the knowledge and strength of each Linker Core it absorbs, until all 666 pages are filled. When that happens, the Book shall grant your wish, and both We and the Book move on till it finds a new Master." As she explained the situation, Signum was doing her best to adjust herself to the odd clothes. They were made for men, though it seems her Master's build was close enough to her own and Shamal's that the clothes fit well enough. She finished buttoning up the shirt, even as the other woman was adjusting the T-shirt she was borrowing.

"Linker Cores? What are those?"

This time, the Knight with blond, wavy hair known as Shamal spoke up, pulling occasionally at her borrowed T-shirt until it settled comfortably. "Every living being has a Linker Core. It is what allows them to process and use Magical Energies. The more it is used, the stronger it becomes, much like a normal muscle, though everyone has a limit as to how powerful they can become. Those who use it from an early age can become stronger than those who only begin training later in life. In essence, it is something of the source of life energy within a person." Glancing over at the sweater sticking out from Keitaro's bag, Shamal grabbed it and began to pull it on, the way the T-shirt accentuated her body looked like it would garner too much attention... and according to her master, that was something they didn't want nor need.

Keitaro nearly dropped the book at Shamal's description. Swallowing, he looked at the book in a new light, as if at any moment it would reveal a fanged maw and start biting him. "So... what happens if someone's Linker Core is stolen?"

"They die." The deep, lightly growling voice of the only male of the group, Zafira, responded. The man with the pointed, wolf-like ears was far too big for Keitaro's clothes, but said that he had things well in hand. Of course, by well in hand, he had shown Keitaro that he could transform into a rather large wolfish creature with sizable fangs and bluish-grey fur. Suffice it to say, Keitaro was not too sure that would go over to well with the people they were trying to meet.

"Are you kidding?!" Keitaro shouted, turning around to face the Knights. Luckily, Shamal and Signum were already finished dressing. "There's no way I'd want something so bad I'd kill people for it! Geez..." Standing up, Keitaro looked down at the Book darkly. "Why would a friend of Grandma's send me such a thing? Did they think I was so hopeless that I needed to WISH myself into Toudai?"

The Knights glanced at each other curiously for a moment, before turning back to their master. "What's a Toudai?" asked the child-like red-headed Knight called Vita. She was the only one aside from Zafira who could not change their clothes... but luckily her base Knight outfit just looked like a small black dress. The only reason why the others had to change was merely for the fact that it would have looked odd if all four of them appeared in similar outfits.

"It's one of the best universities in Japan, if not THE best. It's high standards and prestige makes it one of the most sought after Universities to get into, which is why it's also the hardest." Sighing heavily, Keitaro slumped back down to the ground, hanging his head in depression. "I've been trying for the past two years to get in... but even with that, there's no way I'd wanna kill people just to make it. It'd make the last two years a complete waste of time! I'd rather get in on hard work than some Magical Cheat Code!" Glaring at the Book, Keitaro lifted his arms, as if to slam the book down... before letting out a sigh and flopping onto his back, bringing the Book on his chest as he did so. "... who am I kidding... with my Grades, they probably did think it was the only way I could get in..."

A moment of silence fell over the room as Keitaro let his mind wander. Taking a moment to glance at the Knights, Keitaro took a good look at Signum and Shamal. While his clothes weren't anywhere near stylish, he was glad they seemed to fit the two women relatively well. At the very least he could come up with an excuse of how their clothes got messed up on the way... of course, the fact that women were wearing HIS clothes brought a blush to his cheeks. Sitting back up, the young Ronin turned to Zafira, who was laying in his wolf form.

"I really don't think we'll be able to explain why there's a wolf with us. I mean.. I guess I could just say you guys come from a foreign country... and you're here because your family is friends with mine... But that only works for the girls." Frowning, Keitaro placed the Book in his lap, looking at Zafira curiously. "Can you change into something else? Something.. I dunno... less... dangerous looking?"

tillting his head to one side, Zafira thought for a moment before nodding. "I believe so..." he said, closing his eyes. Even his fellow Knights were curious as Zafira's form glowed, the shining wolfen body seeming to shrink before their very eyes. When the glow finally faded, what was left was stilll furry, but definitely far from intimidating as Zafira had changed from the massive wolf with strong fangs and regal posture to a wolf pup with soft eyes and teeth that would only be dangerous to footwear or some unfortunate piece of furniture.

Gently placing the Book down, Keitaro moved over to the chibified Knight and picked him up, smiling brightly. "I think this will work out well with the people downstairs. Hopefully, they'll consider you cute and just fawn over you... should win us a few points." Looking to Vita, Keitaro motioned the redhead closer. When she was near enough, Keitaro carefully placed the wolf on her shoulder. "There. If they find Zafira too cute, I trust you to protect Zafira." Receiving a firm nod in response, Keitaro gave Vita's hair a soft ruffle before moving to pick the Book up again.

"Master... what are your plans?" Asked Shamal curiously.

Looking at the Book in his hands, Keitaro took a moment to run a finger along the golden bladed cross on the cover with a sigh. "Well... I tell you this. I'm not gonna fill the pages. Tokyo University may be my goal and lifelong dream, but its not worth killing over. Nothing is." Looking up at the Knights, Keitaro's face took on a serious look. Closing his eyes, Keitaro began to think on the task at hand. _'Alright, I'm stuck with a group of people who barely look Japanese, despite the fact that they can probably speak Japanese better than I can. There'd also the way they act at times... Considering they know how to fight, I could perhaps have them pose as a group from a martial artist family... That would fly in some parts of Asia at least... but...'_

"Master?" Looking up from his thoughts, Keitaro took in the patient, if expectant, looks of the... no.. HIS Knights. It wasn't their fault, after all, they were pretty much thrust into this situation, just like he was. With a nod, Keitaro smiled softly before drawing himself up straight, the Book of Darkness held firmly to his side.

"If I am really your Master, than here are my orders. While I am your Master, you will not gather pages for the Book. And, if by some grace of God we are able to stay here, you will not call me Master, but Keitaro. We'll try to play off the fact you guys look somewhat foreign by saying you are family visiting from another country... Sisters from a family that practices old Knight traditions in case anyone questions your behavior. You're here because your parents wanted you to see more of the world, and since our family is old friends with yours, we decided to host you in Japan. Since I'm the eldest in my family, I'm responsible for you all, so you had to come with me since my family is too busy with their Sweet Shop to properly Host you. We came here to Hinata-sou in hopes Grandmother had room... both to properly host you guys and so I can have a proper place to study. Any problems?"

As one, the Knights went down on one knee before Keitaro, eyes downcast. Even Zafira, on his perch on Vita's shoulder, downcast his eyes. "Yes, Master." They said in unison.

Nodding, Keitaro let out the breath he was holding in a long sigh. "Good... now... lets try our best to work out the details of the story before we get called, hm?"

Partway through their discussion, the Knights suddenly fell quiet as Zafira turned to the door, his ears perking up at something as he sniffed the air. Inside his mind, and from what he guessed the minds of the other Knights, Zafira's firm voice rang clear. _'Two people are coming master.'_

Nodding, Keitaro stood up, gripping the book firmly in his right hand. Despite what he was told about it, Keitaro couldn't help but feel protective over the book. After all, it wasn't the Book's fault that people used the Knights to fulfill their wishes. Shaking his head to clear his mind from such thoughts, Keitaro made his way to the door, just as a gentle knock came from the other side. "Coming!"

Taking a deep breath, Keitaro prepared a welcoming smile before sliding the door open. On the other side was a girl with long black hair and dressed like some kind of shrine maiden or swordsman. The fact that she held what appeared to be a bokken at her side pointed more towards the latter. With a wary eye, she nodded her head in greeting, carefully peaking past Keitaro's shoulder at the girls behind him. "Urashima-san. Haruka-san sent me to tell you and your friends to come down for introductions. I shall guide you to the main room."

His welcoming smile faltering under the swordswoman's scrutiny, Keitaro sweated just a little as he nodded. "Um.. alright." Turning to his Knights, Keitaro nodded and motioned for them to follow. "We shouldn't keep them waiting." Receiving an affirmative nod from them all (the nodding wolf made the swordswoman's eyebrow raise slightly), Keitaro turned back to the girl with a renewed smile. "I am Keitaro Urashima." he said with a proper bow.

Looking slightly torn for a moment, the swordswoman gave a sigh, before returning the bow. "Motoko Aoyama." Pulling herself straight again, she gave the girls in the room a nod before moving down the hall. "Come... everyone is waiting."

_'I hope all of them aren't as difficult as she is...'_ Keitaro thought as he moved to follow the swordswoman. _'If they are, our work's cut out for us.'_

Signum's eyes narrowed slightly as she studied their guide. _'She seems to be a warrior, Master. If worse comes to worse, Laevateinn I can handle her.'_ she responded mentally, her hand lightly gripping the chain that held her device.

_'No! Signum, I don't want you or any of the Knights to hurt anyone if we can avoid it. And stop calling me Master, call me Keitaro. If we let something like that slip, it'll be difficult to explain.'_ Bringing his free hand to his head, Keitaro lightly rubbed his temples. He was gonna have to work on his Knights' ability to deal with things outside of battle situations... _'Just stay calm and do not, I repeat, do NOT do anything threatening. We are trying to make a good impression here.'_

It wasn't long before Motoko lead the group to the main den, where four other girls were seated on a couple of couches. Haruka was standing nearby, a nod of approval given to Keitaro when she saw what Keitaro did with the Knights. As soon as Motoko was seated, Haruka clapped for attention and began motioning towards Keitaro. "Girls, this is Keitaro, my nephew. His parents own a sweet shop a couple districts over. He's also a Toudai hopeful like Naru." she said, motioning to a girl with long, reddish-brown hair.

Squirming a bit as he felt all eyes on him, Keitaro cleared his throat and bowed deeply in greeting. "Um... Nice to meet you all! Like Aunt Haruka said, I've been studying to get into Toudai... but because of a difference in opinion with my parents, I've come to see if I couldn't stay here with Granny while I studied." Standing back up, Keitaro put his free hand behind his head and chuckled weakly. "I didn't know it was turned into a Girl's Dorm, though."

An expectant silence was his only answer from the girls, causing the ronin to swallow nervously before moving back a bit to introduce the girls behind him. "Um... these girls are the Wolkenritter sisters! Their family and mine have been friends for generations. They came over from their home country to study abroad, and since our families are so close, it was decided that I help them get adjusted to Japan, which is another reason why I came here." Keitaro felt as if his knees would never stop shaking as no one responded one way or the other, likely stilll expecting more from them.

Saving her master from further scrutiny, Signum stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the group. "Greetings. I am Signum Wolkenritter, eldest of the Sisters. As Keitaro-dono stated, we are here to learn about the world to further our Knight Training. It is our pleasure to meet you." The atmosphere shifted from one of scrutiny to genuine interest after Signum's introduction, causing Keitaro to sigh in relief.

Shamal stepped forward next with a soft smile that contrasted with Signum's serious demeanor. "I'm Shamal Wolkenritter! I hope we can learn alot from you and from this place. If you need help with anything, we'll be glad to lend a hand." With a polite bow, Shamal stepped back and motioned for Vita to go next.

With a sigh and a slightly sour expression on her face, Vita crossed her arms and looked away, not bothering to step forward. "I'm Vita. The wolf on my head is Zafira. Hope ya let us live here." Shamal smacked her forehead with a sigh while Signum merely shook her head.

_'Vita, at least bow to them politely.' _Signum sent telepathically._ 'You'll bring disgrace to our Master if you do not present yourself properly.'_

Snorting in response, Vita glared in Signum's direction. "Excuse me for not bowing. If I do, Zafira will fall down." With that, Vita looked like she was going to go back up the stairs away from all the formalities and introductions... that is, until she found herself face to face with a dark-skinned girl with blond hair who seemed to be looking at Zafira with wide eyed wonder. "oi, what do you think you're doin?"

The girl grinned and brought a hand up to her mouth to wipe something away from the corner. Zafira seemed to tense and Vita backed up as she came to a realization. She wasn't looking at Zafira in wonder... but hunger. "I'm Kaolla Su! Your wolf looks cute... can we eat it?" Before Vita had a chance to react, Su was grabbed by the back of her uniform and pulled away from both girl and wolf. "Hey!" Looking up, Su stopped struggling and swallowed nervously as Haruka looked down at her, shaking her head.

"Su, you're not allowed to eat their pet." Shaking her head at Su's kicked puppy look, Haruka deposited the girl none to gently back on one of the sofas. "Now that that's settled... why don't you girls introduce yourselves so we can go eat dinner."

The girl Haruka identified as Naru stood up suddenly and looked worriedly at Haruka. "House Mother, are we really going to let a guy stay here? I mean, I understand he's your family member, but this is stilll a girl's dorm!" Motoko nodded with Naru's plea, agreeing with her on the matter.

"Indeed. While I can understand filial differences, we do not know Urashima-san well enough to trust him. For all we know he could be lying about his home life in hopes of garnering sympathy so he can commit perverted acts in a dormitory full of girls." the last was said with a hard glint in Motoko's eye as she glared at Keitaro, her thumb catching on some unseen spot of her bokken to push part of it up, revealing a naked blade under what he thought was solid wood. "What do you think, Kitsune-san?"

Stretching her arms over her head with a long yawn, the fox-eyed woman called Kitsune leaned back against the sofa, glancing towards the guests curiously, before shrugging. "I don't see why they can't. The guy looks about as dangerous as a mouse. Heck, if he tried anything, you and Naru could easily beat the crap outta him and kick him out. I say we give the kid a chance for Granny's sake. Heck, Haruka wouldn't be askin if she didn't think the guy was dangerous, would she?"

The statement seemed to calm Naru and Motoko down slightly, though it was easy to see they didn't like the situation. "Um.... " a soft voice cut through the tension, causing all eyes to focus on the last girl, someone barely in her teens dressed in a school uniform, a long apron over it. She stood beside the doorway leading to the dining room. "... dinner's ready." Bowing to the group, the shy girl quickly made her way out of sight.

Hearing a soft sigh nearby, Keitaro looked up as Haruka made her way towards him. "Don't mind her, Keitaro, that was Shinobu Maehara. She's just really shy around strangers. I'm sure after a while she'll talk to you normally." Giving her nephew a grin, Haruka patted the nervous man on the shoulder a little roughly, causing him to stumble forward a bit. "C'mon Keitaro, lets go. You look like you haven't had anything to eat all day. Shinobu's meals are something you should never miss. Afterwards, we'll all have a nice, long talk, hmm?"

Keitaro nodded, absently rubbing his shoulder where Haruka 'patted' him "Talk... right..." he said with a slight nervous chuckle. Shaking his head, Keitaro walked after Haruka, followed by his Knights. _'Something tells me living here will be quite an adventure... I hope things turn out alright...'_

Author's Notes: Right, Chapter number 2! Alot longer than the first, but hey, that's not a bad trend now is it? Again, thanks to Ryoga's Best Friend / TrowaVidel for his input and hope you guys like this ^^ Take care!


	3. Growing Misconceptions

Sometimes, when you do something simple, others may view it as something complicated without hearing your side of things. With patience and a calm heart, you can clear these misconceptions.

The Magical Lyrical Nanoha A's and Love Hina story, of Knights and Ronins, now begins.

* * *

**Chapter 3 Growing Misconceptions**

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* * *

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The cool night air was refreshing to Keitaro after the hot day. Climbing down the steps after Haruka, Keitaro couldn't help but feel a bit vulnerable. After all, for the few hours since their summoning, the Wolkenritter had stuck close to Keitaro. But for this meeting with his Aunt, Keitaro felt that the Knights would make things a little... difficult. Not to mention how Haruka seemed to be on edge whenever they were around. Considering their need to be as close to him as possible, Keitaro helped the Knights set themselves up in the room next to the one he was staying, having been given the Landlord's Room for now since his Grandmother wasn't using it. The rooms were luckily spacious enough to allow the four Knights to stay together with no discomfort, though he planned on helping them get some necessities later. He couldn't just keep lending them his clothes after all.

The way to Haruka's Tea House wasn't very far, the trip down the steps was made in a companionable silence as both Urashimas let their minds wander. There were so many questions Keitaro had... but at the same time, so many things that he was hesitant about explaining in their entirety. Still, it felt wrong to hide anything from his Aunt, especially since she went out of her way to help him out. Gripping the bag he brought with him firmly, Keitaro let the weight of it comfort him.

The Tea House Haruka owned was well kept, built in a similar style to the Hinata-sou. Sliding the wooden door open, Haruka motioned Keitaro inside, turning the lights on and setting a kettle to boil as Keitaro made himself comfortable at one of the tables. By the time Haruka returned with two cups of tea, Keitaro had come to a decision.

"Aunt Haruka..." Keitaro started, only to be cut off by a quick strike to the head with a rolled up newspaper. "OW!"

Lighting a cigarette, Haruka shook her head and put the newspaper down on the table, within easy reach. "Don't call me Aunt. I introduced you as my nephew to cut down on the explanations to the girls, but I'm saying this now. I don't like being called Aunt." That said, she blew out a bit of smoke before raising her tea for a sip. "Now... you were saying?"

Rubbing his head where the newspaper hit, Keitaro chuckled weakly for a moment. "Right... Um... Haruka-san... if you explain to me what you can of how you crashed through the window and how it fixed itself... and what that odd gun was, I'll tell you everything involving my friends and I."

Haruka mulled it over a bit in her mind. "Sounds fair enough. Even if its been a while since we last saw each other, you've always been a good kid that kept your promises. If you promise to tell me the truth and not leave anything out, I can do the same." Receiving a nod in response, Haruka took a moment to pull a triangular pendant out from beneath her sweater. "Alright then... before I tell you about me, I gotta tell you about the TSAB... the Time-Space Administration Bureau." Standing up from her chair, Haruka took a heavy drag from her cigarette, before putting it out completely on the ashtray, letting the smoke out in a long, relaxing sigh. "It's a military force that patrols a large section of inter-dimensional space, centering a majority of their operations on a world called Mid-Childa. Not only does it protect its area of influence from outside forces, but they also monitor and enforce the use of Magic, making sure that its use doesn't affect normal citizens negatively."

Pulling her pendant off, she gently placed it on the palm of her hand, making sure Keitaro was watching closely. "Mages from Mid-Childa use Devices like this one to do most of their magic, but there are a few who don't need them. My Device is named Spartan, he is classified as a Storage Device. His AI is not advanced, but he is useful as a melee to long ranged weapon." Grinning, she gave a playful wink, before looking directly at the triangular pendant. "Spartan, Set Up!"

**[Yes, Master]**

Before Keitaro could react, Haruka's form was engulfed in a bright green light that filled the room, causing Keitaro to wince and shield his eyes from the sudden illumination. When the light finally died down, Haruka's normal clothes were gone, replaced once again by the dark green suit and trench coat outfit he first encountered her in. In her hand, a dagger with a 6 inch long silver blade was held carefully, the cross guard of the dagger revealing the triangular pendant that was in her hand before.

It took Keitaro a moment to take it all in, before saying the first thing that came to mind. While not the most intelligent of observations, "So this means you're some kind of Magical Girl?" was honestly the only thing he could process out of it all. Luckily, a swift smack of a rolled up newspaper got Keitaro's internal processor up and running to normal capacity again.

"As I was saying..." Haruka said as she put the newspaper on the table again. "Devices like this are more or less common for Mages to use in Mid-Childa, so you'll be seeing a lot of different ones if you keep walking down the path you're on right now. As to the rest of your questions of how I crashed through the window and how it got fixed... there's a lot of different kinds of magic out there. Stuff like that is fairly basic." Sitting down once again, Haruka crossed her arms and looked at Keitaro expectantly. "That's about it, really."

"That's a lot to take in." Keitaro shook his head as he finished his cup of tea. "I mean... Mages from Outer Space, talking magical devices... I mean, just the other day I was kicked out of my house, I didn't think I stepped into the Twilight Zone." Leaning back on the chair, Keitaro set the cup down and carefully removed his glasses, rubbing at his temples firmly to work at the growing migraine. "If it wasn't for the fact that I saw it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it. But now...?"

Chuckling a bit at Keitaro's expression, Haruka idly twirled her Dagger-like Device as her uniform glowed a familiar bright green, before fading away, leaving Haruka back in her normal clothes, Spartan taking on its pendant form once more in her hand. "Believe it. Trust me, it was a big surprise for me as well when Granny introduced me to this world. Course, when it happened to me, I was about Shinobu's age or so, so I've been doing this for a good while."

Tensing a bit at the mention of Granny, Keitaro looked at Haruka oddly. "You mean Granny is a part of this too?"

Haruka nodded as she put Spartan around her neck again. "Yup. I mentioned the Time-Space Administration Bureau before, right? Granny's a high ranking officer there. After making admiral, she stationed herself here on Earth to deal with a few things on the home front. That's when me and a few friends got introduced to magic, though its existence is still supposed to be a well guarded secret."

Keitaro frowned and looked down at the table surface, losing himself in thought. The information about the Bureau was rather straightforward, a military force built around the monitoring and enforcing of worlds where Mid-Childa's magic was spread, insuring that it would wasn't used for personal gain. It was also created as a force to defend against dangerous threats, such as unknown magical forces or Mages that have run amok amongst other things. Reaching down for his bag, Keitaro carefully pulled out the object that had so quickly changed his life in the past few hours. "I guess it's my turn..."

* * *

"I don't like this." Vita muttered as she picked at the white teddy bear print pajamas she wore, the sleeves and legs rolled up so they wouldn't be a bother to the red haired Knight.

Arching a brow, Signum took a moment to study Vita's form, before giving a shrug. "The pajamas look fine. If they are uncomfortable, you can ask if Shinobu-san has any others for you to borrow."

Turning a glare towards her leader, Vita shook her head. "Not the clothes, I mean leaving Master alone with that woman! He says she is family, but how can we trust him to a mage who attacked us?" Stomping her foot to drive her point home only succeeded in causing the rolled up legging to loosen, the cloth pooling about her foot.

Seeing this, Shamal moved over to Vita with a sigh, kneeling down to fix the offending cloth with a click of her tongue. "We are all worried, Vita, but Master... no.. Keitaro-dono asked us to trust him. It may not have been an order, but Keitaro-dono's word is absolute. If he is in need of aid, I can bring him directly to us if necessary, or we all can simply fly down there. Either way, Keitaro-dono is in easy reach of us."

Vita's glare lost some of its intensity as she nodded, letting out a frustrated sigh. "I guess... if that crazy Aunt tries anything, Graf Eisen and I will smash her to bits!" The threat wasn't as potent as it could have been since Shamal patted Vita on the head once she finished rolling up her pajama leg.

"Let us hope that doesn't happen." Shamal responded with a soft smile. "Now then, let's put out the bedding and wait for Keitaro-dono, hmm?"

"This one is a bit of an odd one." Zafira said from his spot in the corner. Lacking hands to help out, since he promised not to take his humanoid form around the Inn just in case any of the residents dropped in.

Turning to the Guardian Shield Beast, Signum tilted her head slightly at Zafira's comment. "What do you mean, Zafira?"

"He lacks a wish, and he doesn't want us to fill the pages. He has no knowledge of Magic and seems far too soft and clumsy to be a warrior of any kind. He also treats us... differently. I doubt we've ever ran across a Master like this one." Getting up from his spot on the corner, Zafira walked over to Vita and easily leaped up onto her shoulder, letting his legs hang off of her as he made himself comfortable.

Crossing her arms, Signum nodded with the points made by her fellow Knight. "You are correct. He seems to lack the mental and physical prowess our previous masters held... though he does have a rather powerful force of will and charisma to him that the others did not. Though the order to not fill the pages is disconcerting... I believe our Master has greater plans for us."

The last line drew the other Knights' attention as they turned to face Signum. "What do you mean Signum?" asked Shamal, the woman reaching over to scratch behind Zafira's ear.

"... it is a feeling I have. Keitaro-dono seems to focus on us more than himself. Perhaps he wishes to acclimate us to our surroundings a bit more before enacting his plan. Whatever the case, as Knights, it is our duty to do as the King of the Night Sky commands." Moving to the closet that held the futons, Signum began to pull them out. "Enough talk. We should prepare for rest. We never know what the morrow may bring."

* * *

"... The Book of Darkness... Gotta tell ya Keitaro, when you step in it, you step in it deep." Haruka lit another new cigarette to steady her nerves, a majority of her pack already snuffed out in the ashtray after listening to Keitaro recount what happened to him. "I mean... I've heard the stories, seen some of the reports... but I never expected to see it face to face."

Nodding, Keitaro ran his hand along the Book's Spine, for some reason finding the act calming... like petting a cat almost. _'Only... this Cat can grant wishes by eating people...'_ Shaking his head to clear away the thought, Keitaro gave Haruka a serious look. "Haruka-san... since neither the Book or my Knights pose any danger, will anything happen to them?"

Leaning back against her chair, Haruka mulled over the situation a bit, before shaking her head. "If it were anyone else, I'd take the Book away from you and put your Knights into the TSAB's custody... but... since it's you, I'll talk to Granny instead. She's still my Commanding Officer, so depending on what she says..." Haruka let the sentence hang in the air as she shrugged.

Sighing in acceptance, Keitaro nodded. "Just... tell her that they are my responsibility when you talk to her. Whatever punishment they go through, I at least want some time to prepare them for it. I mean... they're not responsible for what they did since they are only following orders. I... I guess that's all I wanted to say." Getting up, Keitaro picked up his bag, holding the Book to his side as he bowed to Haruka. "It's getting late... I'm going to check on them before heading to bed..."

Haruka nodded before letting out a sigh as she saw Keitaro out the door. "I'll do my best Keitaro. You rest well, whatever Granny's decision, it'll come soon as I call her. I'll let you know tomorrow what happens."

With a nod and a wave, Keitaro left the Tea House, the trek back to the Dormitory feeling far longer than it should, though climbing up the long mountain of steps likely didn't help matters. Considering how late it was getting, telling the Knights about the meeting didn't feel right to him. So, instead of checking in on them, he went straight to his room, using Telepathy to let them know he arrived.

_'Anyone still awake?'_ he asked, trying to keep his mental 'voice' as soft as possible.

_'Welcome back, Master.'_ responded Signum. Smiling softly to himself, Keitaro marveled at how she was always the first one to respond to him.

_'It's late, Signum. Please tell me at least everyone else is asleep.'_

_'Only Vita and Zafira. Shamal and I have been keeping watch while you were speaking with your Aunt.'_

Pulling out the spare futon in the Landlord's Room, Keitaro chuckled at the Knights' sense of duty. If he ever got anything from his brief moments with them, it would be a need to emulate that part of them. _'Well, go to sleep. We may have a rather busy day tomorrow, and I'd rather everyone be well rested for it.'_

Receiving a simple agreement from both, Keitaro sighed as he pulled himself into the Futon, laying the Book right beside his pillow, his glasses on top of it. With a long yawn and stretch, Keitaro fell into a deep sleep, putting aside his worries til the next day.

* * *

Keitaro slept fitfully that night, plagued by a dream of millions of Chibi-Zafiras stampeding across the streets of Tokyo, Keitaro born on their backs as they took him towards a gigantic Book of Darkness, it's pages open to the stampede. For every Zafira that ran into the book, a letter would form on the pages, joining together to make words til a full sentence was made. Every time a sentence was complete, a new line would start, repeating the phrase over and over again.

**"Chances for Tokyo University, Zero Percent"**

The stampede was vanishing before him, until soon he was almost at the eager pages. Shaking his head in fear, Keitaro tried to crawl away from the book, but the carpet of Chibi-Zafiras were far too fast. "No... NO! NOOOOOOOOOO!" he cried, doing his best to make a mad leap away from the condemning pages...

... Only to hit his head against something soft that made a rather feminine cry when he hit it. Slowly bringing himself to reality, Keitaro noticed that whatever was under him wasn't his bed or a pillow, but a rather flustered looking Shamal.

"M... Master?"

It took Keitaro a few moments to transition from the odd dream to reality... but the moment he did, he realized quite a few things.

a.) He wasn't at home

b.) His head was pressed against Shamal's chest.

c.) He was definitely NOT being swallowed by a gigantic version of the Book

d.) Nor was he riding on a stampeding group of Chibi-Zafiras.

e.) A feminine gasp came from somewhere behind him.

Slowly turning around, Keitaro paled as he saw Narusegawa's face peeking down from a hole in the ceiling, the girl's face a bright red as she placed a hand over her mouth. Looking from Naru to the Knight beneath him, Keitaro realized just where his face had been and turned bright red himself.

Moving her eyes from Keitaro to Naru, Shamal blushed slightly, unsure of what to do in such a situation. "... um..."

The sudden sound broke Naru out of her trance, causing her to look away. "D.. Don't mind me! Sorry for disturbing you!" She said quickly before slamming a cover of some kind over the hole.

Swallowing, Keitaro rolled off of Shamal, bowing his head to Shamal repeatedly as he began to sputter apologies. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! Please believe me Shamal, I was half asleep when that happened, I didn't mean to-"

Flustered from the experience, Shamal shook her head and began to bow her head to Keitaro, shaking it to try and ward off his apologies. "N.. No need to apologize Mas.. er.. Keitaro-dono! It was simply an accident, I do not blame you! It was my fault for being caught unaware, so please stop apologizing Keitaro-dono!"

Hesitantly, Keitaro glanced up from his bowed position, letting out a soft sigh of relief when Shamal merely gave him an encouraging smile. "Y.. you sure...?" Receiving a nod in response, Keitaro let out a long sigh of relief, slowly pulling himself up. Taking a moment to roll up his futon, Keitaro cleared his throat before speaking, his face still bright red from his close contact with the Knight. "So... did you need something Shamal?"

If he had been looking, Keitaro would have seen that Shamal had her back to her Master, a hand on her cheek as she tried to bring herself back under control, her own face quite flushed from the experience still. "Oh! Um... Shinobu-san has finished breakfast. I came to see if you were awake and wanted to eat with everyone, Keitaro-dono."

"Oh... well lemme get changed first. Maybe I'll take a bath before breakfast while I'm at it... if I remember correctly, this place has a nice Hot Spring." Putting his futon out of the way, Keitaro took a moment to think, before sighing. "That's right.. .I didn't really plan things out too well. Um.. Shamal? Any chance you could see if there are any spare towels and things so I can take a bath?"

Turning to face Keitaro, Shamal gave her Master a bright smile before bowing. "Of course, Keitaro-dono. I'll have everything ready for you when you finally come down." Either she was eager to please or eager to leave before the situation became more awkward, he wasn't sure, but either way Shamal turned and quickly left the room, leaving Keitaro to shrug and grab his toothbrush.

"Now then, where was the bathroom again...?"

* * *

While Keitaro was searching for the facilities, a rather flustered Naru was trying her best to make sense of the situation she just witnessed. Usually, her response to something that indecent would have been a flying Naru Punch to the face to protect any of the girls in the house. But this time... it was a girl she didn't know. While that normally wouldn't have stopped her, the word that the blond woman uttered had caused her to falter.

_'I mean, how am I supposed to act if they have... THAT... kind of relationship?'_

The only reason Narusegawa had bothered to look into the room in the first place was because their new Manager sounded like he was crying out in his sleep. She couldn't quite make out what he had been saying, but the tone was enough to worry her slightly. Pulling the board away, the first thing she saw was Keitaro literally tackling one of the girls he was supposed to be looking after.

Any anger she might have felt melted away to embarrassed confusion when she heard Shamal call him 'Master' of course.

Sadly, Naru wasn't as innocent as she wished she was. Not due to anything she did herself, but mostly due to the well of information her best friend Kitsune was. No matter how hard she tried not to listen, Kitsune (with the right mood and proper alcohol level) would get it in her head that Naru really needed to know the ins, outs and in-betweens of sex.

Of course, she might have heard wrong, but the fact that Keitaro seemed so comfortable on Shamal's chest was making it hard for Naru to discount the possibility. Which was why she found herself standing in front of Kitsune's room, pacing back and forth as she tried to figure out whether or not she should seek advice from Hinata House's resident drunkard.

Finally gathering enough courage to finally bring herself to knock on Kitsune's door, an amused voice called out from one side.

"Wow Naru, that took you all of fifteen minutes to do. Whatever it is that's bothering you must really be important."

Feeling as if her heart were about to leap out her throat, Naru spun around so fast she nearly made herself dizzy. Leaning against the wall was a smirking Kitsune, fresh from the bath is the damp hair and basket under her arm was any indication.

Eyes wide in shock, Naru took a few glances from her friend to her friend's door, as if trying to understand some mind boggling conundrum. "Y... You're AWAKE? Before NOON?" Sadly, Naru couldn't hide her tone of disbelief, a fact that made Kitsune rather put out.

"Hey! I can wake up before noon! I just usually choose not to. Now, are ya gonna stand in front of my door insultin me first thing in the mornin or did ya need help with somethin?"

Blushing fiercely in embarrassment, Naru stood to one side and sighed. "S.. sorry Kitsune... it's just, something happened and... I need to talk to someone or else I'll never make sense of any of it."

Shaking her head with a chuckle, Kitsune opened the door and motioned her blushing friend inside. "Alright, but lets sit down, I'm guessin this has somethin to do with our new friends somehow. What happened, catch them doin the deed?"

Naru's silence slowly made Kitsune rethink her thoughts of the new Mage in the house. Barely 24 hours and he was christening his new room with his Servants? Now THAT was interesting. Letting out a low whistle of admiration, Kitsune grinned eagerly. "Tell me EVERYTHING"

* * *

Shamal was already waiting for him outside of the bathroom with a basket in her hands.

The fact that there were three baskets full of clothes in the changing room didn't really register to Keitaro, since he only saw that his own towel and basket of bathing tools was already set out for him. There was a slight nagging sensation in the back of his mind that he was missing something, but sadly he had pushed it aside in his eagerness to get into the bath for the first time since returning to Hinata-sou.

Which was why when he heard the voices of his other two female Knights greeting him upon entering the bath area, he was understandably shocked. The only thing knocking him out of his shock was the sudden cry of "PERVERT!", the sheer force of the cry causing him to stumble backwards in fear. Only the sudden clash of metal on metal drew his attention, else he would ave clenched his eyes shut and waited for whatever was to happen.

Before him, Keitaro was treated to a surreal scene... Motoko Aoyama had a katana out and looked as if she were trying to force her way towards him to cut him to ribbons, the only thing stopping her was Signum, her sword Laevateinn blocking the blade and pushing the swordswoman back.

* * *

It had been a long while since Motoko ever felt resistance to one of her strikes. Not since the days she spent training with her sister and the other Shinmeiryuu practitioners. Which was why when her initial strike was not only deftly blocked, but she felt herself being slowly pushed back, Motoko could not help but register shock as she looked at the swordswoman before her.

She knew her friends considered her odd for bringing a sword with her to the baths, and thought she was loathe to admit it out loud, she did it less for the fact that there might be someone to use it on while she bathed, and more as a security blanket of sorts. The familiar weight and feel of Shisui at her side allowed her to relax in the calming atmosphere, the fact that it was in easy reach doing much to ease her worries. When she spotted the Wolkenritter sisters already in the baths, she was ready to ignore any questions that may have come her way. Which is why when all she received was looks of approval from Signum and Vita, an unspoken acceptance from fellow warriors, Motoko felt more at peace than she ever had since coming to Hinata-sou.

Of course, she noticed that neither girl carried a weapon on them either. In fact, outside of their towels, all they had on them were chain bracelets with a small weapon charm of some kind. While she could hardly be one to fawn over jewelry, Motoko did wonder if the girls could possibly point her to where they might have purchased them. Perhaps she might find one with a small katana charm... the girls who followed her about at school did mention something along the lines of matching jewelry being a nice way to bond with new friends. Perhaps she should consult Naru-sempai about such things...?

Her thoughts, however, were disrupted as someone opened the door to the bathing area. Hoping that perhaps Naru had arrived, Motoko glanced up... only to spy the man responsible for the Wolkenritter sisters. Instantly, her mind leaped to a number of conclusions, all of them leading to the same thought. In the blink of an eye, she drew her sword and charged at the man, intent on delivering upon him a painful lesson in common decency.

"PERVERT!"

The sudden, nostalgic 'clang' of metal striking metal was the first thing that shocked her. As she pushed back against Signum, intent n forcing her way through the swordswoman, she spared a brief glance at the western style blade she used, followed by a quick glance over to her sister. Somehow, both had pulled out large weapons where none had been before. Frowning, Motoko pushed hard against Signum's blade and leaped back into a guard position, noting how Signum kept the man at her back at all times.

Suddenly, things began to make sense to her. The barrier that surrounded the building before, the fact someone like him would have three women at his side. The fact they were from Europe. Fighting back the feeling of revulsion that threatened to make her heave then and there, Motoko gathered up her towel. "... I shall take my leave." Glaring at Keitaro, Motoko clenched her fist around Shisui's sheath as she pulled her towel around her with her free hand. "Know that it is only your relation to Granny and your guardian's timely assistance that saves you this day, Magi." Without sparing any of them a glance, Motoko walked past, quickly drying herself off and changing before getting as far away from their new guests as possible.

Motoko needed to meditate on this. While she had no personal experience, she knew the stories told, passed down to every Shinmeiryuu student as part of their training. There was no longer a war, only cold relations... due to that, she would need to calm herself before she interacted with either the Wolkenritters or Urashima in the near future.

Still, to think Granny Hina's own grandson was a Western mage. Honestly, did he need to flaunt his Ministra partners like that? And that Vita girl looked about Suu's age! Firming her resolve, she promised to keep an eye on the man to ensure none of the girls at the dorm fell under his perverted sway.

Back at the bath, Keitaro adjusted his glasses as he looked after Motoko, a look of confusion on his face.

"... what just happened?"

"I... am unsure Keitaro-dono." Signum replied as she and Vita kept their eyes on the door Motoko just left through. Signum dismissed Laevateinn back to its standby mode, moving towards her downed master and firmly helping him back up. The still shocked Keitaro moved on auto-pilot, his eyes still focused in the direction Motoko went til the feel of someone's hands rubbing shampoo into his hair brought him out of his fear and confusion-based shock.

"Vita." Signum said as she began working the shampoo into the now sputtering Keitaro's scalp, some of the soap having went into his eyes since he wasn't prepared or warned of the impending cleansing. "What are you doing?"

Standing near the door, Vita had not moved from her spot, her hands clenching the Iron Hammer tight enough to make her knuckles white with the strain, her eyes focused completely on the door. "Waiting. I don't buy that this warrior just left like that. She must be waiting for us to completely drop our guard before charging back through the door to slay the Master."

Signum paused in her cleaning to glance at the Hammer Knight, pondering the idea, before shaking her head. "I do not believe that will happen. And if you stand there like that, you will catch a cold." Turning back to Keitaro, Signum checked to make sure she didn't miss a spot, before splashing Keitaro clean with a nearby bucket. "Shall I scrub your back for you as well, Keitaro-dono?"

The sound of the door opening again was heralded by Vita's mighty war cry... which promptly died, followed by the loud metallic 'thunk' of Graf Eisen being dropped to the floor quickly. "Hmm? Vita-chan, why are you shouting like that?" Shamal asked as she quickly closed the door behind her so none of the girls would accidentally see the imposing mallet on the ground. "And why did you summon Graf Eisen? Didn't the Mas... I mean.. Keitaro-dono specifically say not to do anything that would garner attention?"

Wiping the water and left-over suds from his eyes, Keitaro blinked to try and get the irritation out. Hearing Shamal's voice, Keitaro turned to the source.. only to blink as his brain finally seemed to catch up with current events. Now, while Keitaro's eyesight was rather bad, he could make out some very important details even without his coke-bottle glasses.

Namely, whether or not someone was naked or not.

"Keitaro-dono? Did you want me to wash your back as well?" Signum repeated, suddenly fearful that the near run-in with Motoko's blade may have done lasting damage to her Master, mentally if not physically.

Slowly, Keitaro turned to Signum... his eyes widened to the size of saucers as he got an eyeful of Signum's rather.. healthy physique. Unable to take much more, the great Master of the Book of Darkness' eyes rolled up and he passed out, his nose bleeding profusely as three of his Knights rushed to his aid.

Suffice it to say, Keitaro's last thoughts as he succumbed to unconsciousness was to make sure nothing like this happened again.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hey everyone, I know its been a while. This has been in the works for a while. Lots of different ideas hitting me at one time, distracting me from this beauty. I make no promises, but hopefully it won't take and entire year for me to update again. Take care everyone ^^


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